The
Yogatattva Upanishad is among the oldest known texts on yoga that provide detailed description of Yoga techniques and its benefits. The text defines "knowledge", translates Aiyar – a Sanskrit scholar, as "through which one cognizes in himself the real nature of
kaivalya (moksha) as the supreme seat, the stainless, the partless, and of the nature of
Sacchidananda" (truth-consciousness-bliss). This knowledge is of the Brahman and its non-differentiated nature with that of the
Atman, of
Jiva and
Paramatman. Yoga and knowledge (
jnana) both go together to realise
Brahman and attain salvation, according to the Upanishad.
Yogas (shown). In the Upanishad, Vishnu states to Brahma that Yoga is one, in practice of various kinds, the chief are of four types – Mantra Yoga is the practice through chants, Laya Yoga through deep concentration, Hatha Yoga through exertion, and
Raja Yoga through meditation. There are four states which are common to all these yogas, states the text, and these four stages of attainment are:
Arambha (beginning, the stage of practicing ethics such as non-violence and proper diet, followed by asana),
Ghata (second integration stage to learn breath regulation and relationship between body and mind),
Parichaya (the third intimacy stage to hold, regulate air flow, followed by meditation for relationship between mind and Atman), and
Nishpatti (fourth stage to consummate
Samadhi and realize Atman). The emphasis and most verses in the text are dedicated to Hatha Yoga, although the text mentions Raja yoga is the culmination of Yoga. The Mantra yoga is stated by the Yogatattva as a discipline of auditory recitation of mantras but stated to be an inferior form of yoga. It is the practice of mantra recitation or intonations of the sounds of alphabet, for 12 years. This gradually brings knowledge and special powers of inner attenuation, asserts the text. This mantra-based method of yoga, asserts Yogatattva, is suited for those with dull wit and incapable of practicing the other three types of yoga. Laya yoga is presented as the discipline of dissolution where the focus is on thinking of the "Lord without parts" all the times while going through daily life activities. The Laya Yoga, the second in the order of importance, is oriented towards assimilation by the
chitta or mind, wherein the person always thinks of formless
Ishvara (God). The Hatha Yoga, to which
Yogatattva Upanishad dedicates most of its verses, is discussed with eight interdependent practices: ten
yamas (self-restraints), ten
niyamas (self-observances),
asana (postures),
pranayama (control of breath),
pratyahara (conquering the senses),
dharana (concentration),
dhyana, and
samadhi that is the state of meditative consciousness. The text discusses meditation and thereafter through verse 128, twenty stages of Hatha Yoga practice such as of
Maha-mudra,
Maha-Bandha,
Khechari mudra,
Mula Bandha,
Uddiyana bandha,
Jalandhara Bandha,
Vajroli,
Amaroli and
Sahajoli. Thereafter, the Upanishad asserts Raja yoga to be the means for Yogin to detach himself from the world, translates Ayyangar – a Sanskrit scholar. The tool for meditation, states the text, is Pranava or Om mantra, which it describes in verses 134–140, followed by a statement of the nature of liberation and the ultimate truth.
Asanas The Upanishad mentions many
asanas, but states four postures of the yoga for the beginner commencing on
pranayama (breathing exercises) –
Siddhasana,
Padmasana,
Simhasana and
Bhadrasana. The detailed procedure and the setting for these are described in the text. Sitting in Padmasana (lotus) posture, the text states that the pranayama or breathing must be gradual, both inhalation, holding and exhalation should be slow, steady and deep. The text introduces a series of time measures (
matras, musical beats) to aid self monitoring and to measure progress, wherein the beat is created by the yoga student with fingers self circumambulating and using one's own knee for the beat pulse. A sequential gradual inhalation over sixteen Matras (digits), holding the air deep within for sixty-four Matras and gradually exhaling the air over thirty-two Matras is suggested as the goal of the breathing exercise. The Upanishad suggests breathing exercises in a variety of ways, such as breathing with one nostril and exhaling with another, asserting that a regular practice multiple times a day cleans up the
Nadis (blood vessels), improves digestive powers, stamina, leanness and causes the skin to glow. The text recommends restraining oneself from salt, mustard, acidic foods, spicy astringent pungent foods. The text also states that the yoga student should avoid fasting, early morning baths, sexual intercourse, and sitting near fire. Milk and
ghee (clarified butter), cooked wheat, green gram and rice are foods the text approves of, in verses 46–49. The Upanishad also recommends
massage, particularly areas of body that tremor or profusely perspire during the practice of yoga. The next stage of Yoga practice, states the text, is termed Ghata (Sanskrit: घट) with the goal of bringing union of
Prana (breath),
Apana (hydration and aeration of body),
Manas (mind) and
Buddhi (intellect), as well as between
Jivatma (life soul force) and
Paramatman (supreme soul). This practice is a step, asserts the text, for
Pratyahara (withdrawal from distraction by sensory organs) and
Dharana (concentration). The aim of
Dharana, states Yogatattva, is to conceive everyone and everything one perceives with any of his senses as same as his own self and soul (Atman). In verses 72 to 81, the text describes a range of mystical powers that develop within those who have mastered
Ghata stage of yoga. The Upanishad adds that "perfection requires practice, the yogin must never revel in what he achieves, never be vain, never be distracted by trying to comply with demonstration requests, remain oblivious to others, yet be always intent on achieving the goals he sets for himself". refers to "the latent spiritual power that exists in every person". The premise mentioned in Yogatattva, is also a fundamental concept in
Tantra, and symbolizes an aspect of
Shakti that is typically dormant in every person, and its awakening is a goal in Tantra. In Yogatattva text, this stage is described as where the Yogin's Chitta (mind) awakens and enters the
Sushumna and the
chakras. . The five elements of
Prthivi,
Apas,
Agni,
Vayu and
Akash are called as the "five Brahmans" corresponding to five gods within (Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra, Ishvara and Sada-Shiva), and reaching them is described by the text as a process of meditation. The meditation on each, asserts Yogatattva, is assisted by colors, geometry and mantras:
prthivi with yellow-gold, quadrilateral and
Laṃ,
apas with white, crescent and
Vaṃ,
agni with red, triangle and
Raṃ,
vayu with black, satkona (
hexagram) and
Yaṃ,
akash with smoke, circle and
Haṃ. The Upanishad dedicates verses 112 through 128 on a variety of Hatha yoga asanas. The procedure and benefits of yoga practices of
Sirsasana (standing on the head for 24 minutes), Vajroli and Amaroli are explained briefly by the text. With these practices the Yogin attains the Raja Yoga state, realizes the facts of the life cycle of mother-son-wife relationship.
Om meditation The Upanishad expounds the principles behind Om mantra as part of the yogic practice asserting that "A", "U" and "M" are three letters that mirror the "three Vedas, three
Sandhyas (morning, noon and evening), three
Svaras (sounds), three Agnis and three
Guṇas". Metaphorically this practice is compared to realizing the hidden smell of a flower, reaching the
ghee (clarified butter) in milk, reaching the oil innate in
sesame seeds, effort to extract gold from its ore, and finding the Atman in one's heart. The letter "A" represents the flowering of lotus, "U" represents the blooming of the flower, "M" reaches its
nada (tattva or truth inside, sound), and "ardhamatra" (half-metre) indicates the
Turiya, or bliss of silence. The Upanishad states that following the yogic practices prescribed, once the yogin has mastered the functioning of nine orifices of the body and awakened the Sushumna inwards, he awakens his Kundalini, he becomes self-aware, knows the Truth and gains the conviction of his Atman. ==Reception==